Various types of balloon inflators have previously been known. Typically, such inflators incorporate a through-flow motor which draws air from the surrounding atmosphere and exhausts it through an air duct adapted to receive the neck of a balloon. Accordingly, the air used for inflating the balloon is the same air that was drawn through the motor to cool it. As the motor works, its temperature rises. This is aggravated by the use of narrow nozzles at the outlet of the inflator to receive the balloon neck. The narrow nozzle restricts the air flow and accordingly raises the motor temperature. This is particularly true when a large number of balloons are being inflated in succession, for each balloon constitutes a motor load which varies as the balloon inflates. As a result, the motors of such inflators are given to quick wear-out after operating at continuously high temperatures.
Aggravating this problem further, as the temperature of the motor rises, the balloons are inflated with increasingly warmer air. After the balloon is inflated and the neck sealed, the balloon appears to deflate as the warm air cools and contracts. In the case of Mylar balloons, the balloons become wrinkled and soft-looking in appearance. Further, with Mylar balloons, when the balloon has hit its maximum expansion, the air flow substantially terminates. When the balloon is removed, the small orifice nozzle used for inflating the balloon does not allow the air flow to increase significantly to lower the temperature. There has previously been provided in the art an inflator for passing air through a narrow nozzle to the balloon during the inflating process, and subsequently passing the air through a larger opening or orifice, bypassing the nozzle, to increase through flow of the motor and lower its temperature after the inflating process. Such an inflator is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,402 which establishes the state of the art of balloon inflators at this point in time. However, the balloon inflator taught by this prior patent also employs a through-flow motor which, while constituting a vast improvement over its prior art, still results in an increase in balloon air temperature and resulting disfigurement of the balloon upon cooling.
The prior art has also been generally devoid of a balloon inflator which is operative at various speeds or at various pressure levels to accommodate both latex and Mylar balloons. This prior art has also been generally devoid of a quiet operating balloon inflator, operating at reduced noise levels.